Powell excited at Pindi crowd response

RAWALPINDI: Pumped up with the thrilling exhibition of stroke-making by Peshawar Zalmi’s batsmen against Quetta Gladiators on their way to becoming the first team to earn playoff spots on all nine editions, Ravman Powell praised the Pindi crowd for the immense support it has shown.

“I wish we could have taken the Pindi crowd to Karachi for the playoffs. Their support and backing have gone a long way in lifting our spirits and helping us put up a show that you have seen today. The crowd here has shown full support for us. Playing in front of such a supportive crowd was fun.”

The Jamaican all-rounder smashed some quick runs to give Zalmi a big score following Akeal Hosein’s hat-trick that put breaks on the free-flowing Zalmi.

Powell termed Zalmi’s captain Babar Azam as the most cherished player. “ Zalmi’s crowd has shown great support for Babar.

They love his game and have shown tremendous support for him. It was Babar and Saim Ayub who set the tone for a big total.

When the pair was playing, we were eyeing around 230 targets. Then the middle-order collapse let us down. Still, we managed to score around 200 which was a good total to defend.”

The West Indies player also praised Babar’s captaincy prowess. “ I am impressed with his captaincy. He has shown maturity in the middle. Bowling changes and putting the team under pressure are some positives of his captaincy.

He is a human and could falter. I think everyone expected a lot from Babar each time he lands at the wicket.”

He maintained that Babar has been instrumental in popularizing the Zalmi brand.

“It is because of Babar that Zalmi fan following has increased to a considerable level in recent times.”